Free Cutlass: Motor City Alien Mail Order Brides: Intergalactic Dating Agency by Ellis Leigh Page A

because her engine looked as if it was ready to be melted down. If I couldn’t fix whatever was wrong with it, Maivehricck probably could. Hohddshoun wasn’t as skilled as I was, but Maivehricck was the best of the three of us. He could repair almost anything without a lot of strain. Me? I wasn’t as strong, so this was going to take a lot out of me. Something I didn’t mind because it was Klow-ee I helped. I just couldn’t let her actually see what I was doing.
    With no humans in sight and Klow-ee behind the metal lid, the timing was as perfect as could be. I placed my hand against the filthy hunk of metal and let my Reithhkoneccs flow. Small parts and pieces fell into position, wires and sensors all aligning properly. It took only a few seconds to find the broken part. The unit, a power-keeping device, would need to be replaced, but I had enough energy to give it a temporary boost so Klow-ee could get to work. I’d bring Maivehricck with me later tonight so he could work on it while I wooed my new mate.
    With a great rumbling grind, the engine finally fired and began to run. I dropped the lid, happy with the repair but knowing things were about to go bad for me. My own efforts to stay on my feet seemed even greater than what it took that motor to start. The power unit had completely drained me, leaving me feeling slightly foggy and offline. A bad spot to be in for sure as a non-earthling stuck in the middle of an all-human population. I needed to get back to my rented room, back to where I could recover out of sight. And that need only got worse the moment Klow-ee stumbled out of the car, staring at me in what I could only describe as fear.
    “How’d you do that?”
    She saw. I knew it, could tell by the surprised sound to her voice. She saw…she knew my secret. Or part of it. The agency had said to wait to tell her about what I was. To give her the full two weeks to get to know me so I could woo her.
    The time to woo was over.
    Still, words were hard with my body so drained. “I can fix things.”
    “Yeah, so can a mechanic, but they need tools and things. How’d you do—” she waved at the car “—all that. With nothing.”
    “I told you—”
    “And the door to the room. And the thermostat. You fixed those things, too.”
    The translator unit released images for her words but slowly. It took me longer than it should have to answer her. “The door wasn’t broken.”
    “Don’t try to distract me,” she yelled, looking fierce and ready for battle as I struggled to stand up. “The door was locked, and you un locked it without a key. The thermostat was broken, and you fixed it. My car wouldn’t start, but you made it. How did you do all that?”
    Hadn’t I already told her this? “I fix things.”
    “You said that.”
    Apparently, I had, but I couldn’t remember through the fog in my mind. This was it, my one chance to explain myself to her, and I was blowing it because I couldn’t keep my thoughts straight. That wouldn’t do. Readying myself for a battle I absolutely had to fight and win, I took a deep breath and held out my hand in her Earth greeting. “I am Cutthlaise, Reithhar Warrior of the planet Xouthhgros and Master Machinist for the former BHG489-2140 Colony.”
    She retreated a step. “Planet…what?”
    When she didn’t take my hand, I let it fall back to my side. My esehhnce felt as if it was breaking inside, as if it was being torn in two. I’d wooed her, claimed her with my cock, and spent hours learning how to please her. Could she be so afraid of me now simply because I fixed things?
    “Klow-ee,” I said, trying to keep my voice loud enough for her to hear me. Exhaustion quickly weighing me down. “I’m not from here.”
    “No shit,” she said, a rough laugh escaping her. “But not from here and magically fixing a car are two different things.”
    Calm. Detailed. Explain the process, and the answer will be found. “My kind, we have skills that yours do not. Power seems